Crimson Raindrops
by JazzJaide
Summary: Hermione's life has gone completely downhill since the beginning of her sixth year. She is hurt by how many people she has lost throughout the short year and is placed in the care of the Order. Only, it's in the very care of the people that should love her the most that Hermione decides to take fate into her own hands. Regulus/Hermione completely. Mature themes throughout so beware
1. Chapter 1

Her parents were gone. Murdered while she was away at school. Ronald had broken up with her for that stupid blonde twit. Harry had been distancing himself off from the moment that she had accepted to be Ron's girlfriend. Hermione Granger may have been the smartest witch of her age, but she most certainly was not the most loved. In fact, she ventured to guess that out of everyone she knew, she was the least loved and loneliest of all. She wasn't sure how it occurred, but sixteen year old Hermione Granger was completely alone. Which was utter nonsense really—she sat in the corner of the library at Grimmauld Place cold and shivering—all she had to do was to go out into the hall and find where the other inhabitants of the house were. She didn't want to do that though, she had been pushed away enough to know that they didn't really want her here. She wasn't welcomed here anymore. The only real reason that she was even here was because Dumbledore had seen fit to place her in the safety of the Order until school started back up. Yes, Dumbledore had placed her in the safety of the people that had once loved her.

Hermione's mouth twitches slightly as it usually does when she's thinking about something depressing or sad. She thinks about how very quiet Grimmauld Place is now that Sirius is gone and she wonders briefly whether or not he would still treat her the same as before. She tsks herself softly, of course Harry's godfather would still treat her the same as before, he wouldn't have changed one bit. After all, the great Sirius Orion Black changed for no one but for his own will. She had heard the saying on multiple occasions straight from the mouth of the Marauder himself. Her mind drifts back to reality for a moment as she stares down at the book in her lap, _Time Travelling: Good or Evil?_, and wonders what the Marauders were like when they were younger.

She can just picture a young Sirius Black who was cocky and arrogant as he could be standing right beside his two best friends. She purposely left Peter Pettigrew out of the vision—she preferred her view of the past as good. James Potter had brown eyes and unruly black hair, he was tall for his age and always had that smirk on his face that meant he was thinking of some prank. Remus Lupin had brown hair that was a tad bit unkempt, a small smile could always be seen on his tired and worn out face. He was the only one of the group to be holding a book in Hermione's vision, because she had it on very good authority that Sirius and James preferred to do other things than 'sit in one place for hours only moving your eyes about'. She smiles to herself, because even though she knows that her vision of the Marauders was at least somewhat correct, she had no idea how accurate she was or if she should even bother to think about such a thing.

Remus had told her on multiple occasions—usually when she was extremely stressed out— that he thought that she was born in the wrong generation. He said that she would be better off in the time that he himself was a teenager, because then she could truly focus on being herself rather than keeping her attention on saving the magical world. It was right then, while Hermione Granger was thinking about what her old professor had said that she decided what she was going to do.

No matter what, whether Harry and Ron disliked the idea or not, Hermione Jane Granger was taking her future in her own hands. In order to do this, she would be doing the one thing that she had always been told. She would go back in time and live among the generation that she was often told that she belonged in. A small smile sneaks its way onto the face of the bookworm as she decides her own destiny. It was the first time in a long time that she had truly smiled.


	2. Chapter 2

She had just slipped into her nightgown and was getting ready to slide under the covers when someone knocks on the door of her room. She freezes at the edge of her bed and wonders if she should even answer it, but then whomever it is knocks again.

"'Mione, it's me." It only takes her a second to recognize the voice and she sits on the end of her bed slowly.

"You can come in, Harry." Her soft tone of voice surprises her and she shifts nervously in discomfort as her bedroom door opens slowly and the raven haired boy enters her room almost shyly.

"I know we haven't talked in a while… quite a while really… you just seemed different at dinner tonight." He says this quietly as he walks closer to her and she looks down at the hands in her lap.

"Harry, would we still be close if Sirius were alive?" the moment that the question was out of her mouth, she felt like kicking herself.

"We are close 'Mione…" he flinches as he looks into her eyes and she can tell just by his expression that he knew that was a joke.

"I've come to the conclusion that no one really wants me here anymore." She whispers her revelation to him and focuses her eyes back on the wall opposite of her.

"It's just… 'Mione, it's a little uncomfortable is all—what with Ron and then your parents." He says this quickly as if it would help the situation at all.

"I think… I've finally discovered where I could gain my happiness back." She says simply, "I'm leaving soon." She adds as she notices him twitching uncomfortably.

"Hermione, you don't have to do this." He states this quickly, "we need you to for the Order." Those are the words that slice through her emotions, that she was only wanted so that she could help.

"Maybe, Harry, I could change everything from where I'm going." She speaks quietly, "I mean, I'll be more than a waste of space then." She hears him sigh as he refers to what Ron had taken to calling her lately, 'a waste of space'.

"You've already got your mind set?" he asks and she knows from the tone of his voice, that he has already given up on her.

"Yes. Yea I do Harry." The strong tone of her tone of voice surprises them both and he stands silently.

"Will you keep in touch?" he questions as he's walking towards the door, she smirks to herself quietly.

"It'll be a while before we can talk." She whispers and he nods before leaving her room, effectively ending the conversation.


	3. Chapter 3

_Dear Dumbledore, _

_ I know that this may come of great shock to you sir, but I am truly unhappy with my life. I understand that you placed me in Grimmauld Place among people that I knew and loved for a reason, but you did not know that I am unloved here now. Ronald refuses to speak to me, and from the way that the rest of the Weasley's are acting, he must have told them all about how it's my fault for our separation. With his two best friends separating, Harry had no choice but to make a decision and I, unfortunately became friendless. In the time that I have spent here at Grimmauld Place, there have only been two people here that have treated me kindly—Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks. I hope you understand sir, that my decision to leave this place did have thought put behind it. There is no need to look for me, I'm sure that when I arrive you will know almost immediately. Yet sir, I kindly ask that you keep this from Harry and Ron for as long as possible. I know them quite well and even though we aren't very close—I fear that they may try to save me when I do not even need saved to begin with. _

_ I've studied the theory of my travel quite well, there is no need to worry about that sir, I understand my limitations and know the rules quite well. After all, you are one of the people that helped in deciding to give it to me to begin with. I wish you well in your quest to end Voldemort and I hope you know that I when I arrive at my destination, I will work as hard as I have here to help as much as possible. You've helped me multiple times throughout my time here and I just want to thank you for helping me become who I am today. _

_ Best Wishes and Farewell, _

_ Hermione Jane Granger_

_X_

_X_

_X_

_Dear Remus,_

_ Notice that I've stopped tacking Professor on your name, as you've kindly asked me to do several times. Remus, I must thank you for how nice and respectful to me that you've been to me this summer even though I know that you've noticed how the rest of our housemates act around me. I know that you're curious as to where I've gone off too, but there's no reason to worry. I'm sure that when I arrive at my destination that you will find out quickly. After all, it was you that has given me my inspiration. Do no worry over me too much Remus, because I will be fine where I land. Just know that you mean very much to me as a friend and you are the only reason that I hesitate to leave at all. You're very clever, dear Remus, so I know that you most likely already have an inkling as to where I am headed. I just wanted to say one thing to you before you leave so that you are truly at ease with my mysterious disappearance. _

_ Remus James Lupin, I swear to you on the passion that we share for literature and knowledge that I, Hermione Jane Granger will give her best attempt at keeping Padfoot and Prongs from their most dismal fate. On the other hand, when I see one specific Marauder, I may just murder them. I love you for how much you've done for me Remus, please be happy and follow your heart when it comes to Tonks. _

_ Farewell Good Friend, _

_ Hermione Jane Granger_

_X_

_X_

_X_

_Dear Harry, _

_ You had the knowledge that I was leaving before the rest of the Order did, yet you chose to keep the news to yourself. It's hard for me to decide whether you doing this was a friendly act or not, but I choose to believe that you meant no harm. Harry, I know that we haven't spoken much to each other recently and we both know why, but you will always be one of my best friends. Please do not try to find me, I've left on my own accord and you will find out where I am at shortly. I wasn't lying when I said that it may be a while before I spoke, I trust that you won't be to angry with me when you find out just how long. _

_ Do you remember the time in the library, when I was helping you study for O.W.L.S. and we ended up just talking about how much we missed the muggle world? That was one of my happiest memories during third year, other than saving Sirius of course, but that was just a given after all. Harry, you were the only person that I could talk to when I missed watching films and talking on the phone, because you were the only person that I understood that part of me. I know that you must feel awful with yourself about not trying to talk me out of leaving, but you and I both know that when I set my mind on doing something, I do it. I love you Harry James Potter as my best friend and as the brother that I never had. Harry, if Remus hasn't spoken to you yet, I suggest that you go talk to him, but I will leave you with this promise: _

_ Harry James Potter, I swear to you on the love that we both share of the muggle world, that I, Hermione Jane Granger, will help save Lily and James Potter from their dismal fate. In doing so, I also insure that I will help save Sirius Orion Black as well. This of course will enable you to have the family that you've only dreamed about. _

_ With Love, _

_ Hermione Jane Granger_


	4. Chapter 4

**Quick Authors Note: Yes, I do realize that I've changed the tense of the story halfway through the chapter. I do know that it is unconventional, but honestly this is my story and I feel that this will benefit the story greatly. **

She touches her beaded bag quickly, to ensure that it was still on her shoulder, before looking back at the reflection in the mirror. She had spent extra time on her hair this morning, even going as far to use a de-frizzing potion in order to make it look nice. She really doesn't know why, she had no idea what would happen when she went back in time, all she knew was that she would still be in Grimmauld Place. Breathing out for a moment, she stares at her face and wonders if anyone would ever find it beautiful. She shakes her head quickly as she realizes how ridiculous she is being at a crucial moment in her lifetime.

She goes to stand in the middle of the room before she can think of anything else to postpone her trip. Pulling the thin chain out from under her robes, Hermione's anxiety almost soars, what if she messed up? She shakes her head quickly, she knew that she wouldn't if she could just focus on what she was doing. One of her trembling hands reaches for the small vial containing the sand and stabilizes it. She knows that she needs to be careful with counting the turns and she breaths out slowly as she forces herself to calm down. One, two, three… five six… eleven twelve… thirteen… it was when she was turning it for the fourteenth time that the door burst open. She fights to keep her focus, knowing that if she messed up now, that there would be no way to fix her mistake. Her eyes narrow as she continues counting going on fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, before she feels herself falling forward.

Instincts tell her that she needs to protect herself from the falling and that's exactly what she does—reaching out with her hands as the floor comes racing towards her. She feels the familiar pull at her naval before she touches the hard floor and she shrieks as she realizes that whoever had caused her to fall had messed up her counting. With a pop, Hermione Granger is transported to an unplanned time in the past.

X

X

X

I fall hard against the unkind flooring of Grimmauld Place and grunt from the pain of it all. As I roll over slowly it hits me suddenly—I'm not the only one in the room. I groan quietly as blurred faces loom in front of me. I wince as my hand comes up to touch the back of my head and finds a small cut—stupid, freaking floor.

"Who are you?"

"How'd you get past the wards?"

"Bloody hell, she's bleeding!"

"Can she ever hear us?" an excited voice whispers quietly and my vision clears up after a moment.

"Oh Merlin." I moan quietly as I begin to recognize the faces that were still hovering above me.

"So?" A dark haired boy with glasses asks quietly and I breathe in and out slowly before giving them an answer.

"I've made a mistake." I whisper and attempt to set up but find it extremely difficult to do so with so many people crowding around me.

"Of course you have, you've just barged into Sirius Black's bedroom." A sandy haired boy smirks before reaching a hand out to me.

It takes me a moment to realize that Remus Lupin was actually offering to help me stand up and I take his hand tentatively. He gently helps me up before releasing my hand and I breathe out again as I look around the room that I used to call Harry's.

"Why are you here?" A black haired boy with piercing blue eyes stares at me and I find myself looking down at where the time turner was.

"I… I've come into the past." I whisper the truth to them and hear one of them snort at my answer.

"Like I really believe you! Did Marlene put you up to this?" Sirius demands angrily and I roll my eyes at the boy.

"I really have no idea what you're talking about Sirius." I watch his eyes widen in satisfaction and sigh, "Look, I've got my evidence right here." It was then that I take the small chain and raise it up over my head and showing them the time turner.

"Holy hell!" Remus mutters and a silence fills the room as everyone stares at the studious male.

"Is she for real?" The boy that I can only assume— after identifying everyone else in the room— is James asks.

"The time turner shows that she's gone back nearly twenty years." Remus pales as he glances at me quickly before back at the magical object in his hands.

"Holy hell!"


	5. Chapter 5

"C-could I get a glass of water?" I question quietly after nearly an hour of complete silence and awkward stares.

"Of course—Pete?" A scowling Sirius glances at the short boy quickly and I watch in quiet disapproval as there is an immediate acquiescence to the demand.

"What's it like?" Steel gray eyes watch my expression warily, I flinch inadvertently as flashes of my old reality appear and I watch as the three people in the room all frown at once.

"Not good, eh?" James asks with a scowl that I'd grown used to seeing on the face of his future son and I feel a pit in my stomach as I start to realize how much I would miss my ex-friends.

"Not really." I avoid their intense gazes by looking down at my fiddling hands, I always messed with my hands when I got nervous and wasn't sure what to say.

"I'm assuming that's why you're here." Remus mutters and I nod quickly.

"You should know that I didn't just barge into your room… I was… sort of already in the house when I came here." I look up into Sirius's eyes quickly and I can tell he's warring with himself on whether to believe me or not.

"Well that's a relief—already got to deal with an errant time travel, don't need her to be a criminal as well." James smirks and I find myself smiling for a brief moment before reality sinks in and I sigh quietly.

"I came back so that the future could be a better place for us all, I just hadn't meant to come this far back." I whisper to myself and find myself speaking to the Marauders as well.

"And what time did you plan on going back to?" Remus asks curiously and I frown as I wonder whether I should answer the question truthfully or if I should just skirt the issue completely.

"A year and a couple months after James's wedding." I mummer and I can feel the entire room tense up for a moment.  
"I've gone and gotten myself hitched?" James demands lowly and stands up, quickly coming to stand in front of me. "To who?" he demands and I find myself looking into a face so similar to Harry's that I can't force myself to lie to it.

"You should know the answer to that one yourself Prongs, after all you've already been trying to get her for years now." I push it out and then force my mouth to shut as I watch James's face go from the angry red that it had been when he'd heard to a sickly pale look that I didn't approve of whatsoever.

"And what would we be doing?" Sirius blurts out curiously and I shut my eyes for a moment and glance at Remus, the only one who seems to know that I'm changing history as we speak, before answering his question.

"Sirius would be the best man at the wedding—though you'd be depressed because…." I whimper as I realize how much I could change in this one sentence.

"Because?" Sirius prompts, so eager to hear his own sordid future.

"Marlene never came back from an order mission." I whisper the absolute truth quietly and feel tears beginning to well up in my eyes as I remember Sirius speaking to me about how much he had truly loved her when he was younger. "Remus—you'd be a groomsmen of course, though a bit pale from the pictures that I've seen, it was close to the full moon after all." It was completely out then and I could feel the intense anxiety in the room skyrocket as the group finally understood that I knew more than they had previously thought.

"H-how?" Remus stutters quietly, seemingly the first one to truly get it together.

"How do I know? I knew you in the future Remus, in fact, you were the one that encouraged me to find a place that would suit me better. I knew you as well Sirius, I lived with you for a short while after all." I admit softly.

"You know, you come in here and shock the hell out of us by showing us your personal time turner and now you're basically giving us all heart palpitations from how much you know about us." Sirius barks out and I immediately cower away from the furious boy, I knew not to cross a rampaging Padfoot.

"Padfoot, maybe you should-" Remus tries to stop his friend from causing more damage, but it's almost too late.

"It's almost like you're out to get us or something! Are you a deatheater or just one of his 'loyal supporters' that are so fond of proving themselves? What happened did your poor dark lord get angry at you for something? Did you get punished?" Sirius demands cruelly and I feel tears begin to fall as I start to understand that maybe I had messed up by coming here, maybe I had made my life even worse than before. "Well?!" It's only then that I'm truly aware that he's waiting for an answer.

"No, I think I'm quite the opposite of what you consider me to be. How can you consider me such an enemy when I have the one thing that you've wanted the most?" I question him quietly and stand up before taking my satchel off and then removing my robes so that I could show him the small phoenix on my shoulder blade.

There's absolute silence as they look at the mark that signifies that not only am I truly on the light side of the war, but that I am obviously in the Order as well. I find my tears drying up and turning into a fierce anger as I turn around and glare at Sirius Black. His eyes tell me that he's battling with himself and that he has no idea what to say, but his body indicates that he's furious with me.

"You know Padfoot, I can honestly say that I'm surprised. My Sirius would never lash out on someone for telling the honest truth, no matter how hurtful, and what's worse is that you are one of the reasons that I came back to begin with. I promised someone close to me that I would save you! I promised that no matter what happened, I would keep you alive and well, and now here you are flying off the handle on me! How dare you!" I shriek the last part before my anger stops my words and I growl to myself. "If anyone needs me, which I'm sure you won't, I'll be in the library." I hiss quietly before shoving past one of my future mentors and marching out of the room.


	6. Chapter 6

I stalk my way into the familiar library and throw myself onto one of the couches in front of the fire. My firm façade falls as my chests seems to tighten in a second's time and I can barely breathe—this always happened when I was inclined to believe that I had failed something. I had failed something, this was no inclination, a couple minutes into my new world and I had already botched it up. Staring at the fire angrily, I feel tears beginning to fall and I huff angrily at myself. I hated crying. Hated it more than I hated failing. It made what little weakness I had in my character apparent.

"I know that you'd prefer to be alone, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for the way that Padfoot acted." I hear someone speaking from the doorway and I wince before pulling my knees up to my chest in response. "Speaking for my future self, I think you belong in this era quite well." Remus whispers quietly before leaving.

"Right, I belong in the time where one of my biggest mentors is a bloody asshole." I find myself muttering to the dancing flames. "I should have planned better than this, I've got absolutely nowhere to go." If I had been paying attention to my surroundings, I would have noticed that I truly wasn't alone in the large library.

"You'll stay here, of course." I hear someone speak up from behind me and I find myself standing up and instinctively point at the intruder with my wand.

"How long have you been there?" I demand as my eyes adjust so I could see into the farther corner of the room.

"Does it matter? I should be asking you how long you've been in my house." The silky drawl of the boy catches my attention and he steps out of the shadows.

"Only minutes I assure you." I answer him and take a step towards the door of the library, wary of the fact that I couldn't identify who this was.

"You mean only minutes in this era." A smirk reminiscent of Sirius's is given and lightning strikes me as I make the sudden identification.

My mind races with possibilities as I stare at the youngest Black sibling, I had forgotten about him entirely. I know that I'm staring at him, but I can't stop myself as he steps into the light and an entirely new plan forms in my mind. I had completely lost my chance helping Sirius directly, if I could change Regulus's path in life though, then I could still keep my promises. Everything was changing so quickly though and fate was evidently not in my favor. I should have known that this would have happened, once one meddles around with time, it's like they're going against the very ideal of nature. Suddenly, I felt very much like Victor Frankenstein.

"You can't tell anyone." I whisper quietly and look down at the floor. "It was idiotic for me to come here without further research of the period." I sigh as I turn my back on him and fall back against the couch once more.

"More like, you didn't know how much of an asshole my teenage brother was." He walks around the couch and stands in front of me.

"True." I admit and look up at him and watch as his expression changes.

"You really come from the future?" he questions and for a moment I'm silent.

"I do. Remus believes me and so should you." I answer him and he raises an eyebrow at me as if my statement was ludicrous. "I have my time turner and I also know quite a bit about certain people in this time." I explain and lift the small chain around my neck so that the tiny hourglass could be seen.

"Why'd you come?" he asks next and sits on the couch facing me so that he could read my expression easily.

"My time was coming to an end. I had a price on my head and I was one of the last of the light alive." I answer him quietly avoiding the actual reasoning behind my coming back in the past.

"You came back to change the timeline." He states and stares at me for a moment before asking his next question. "I'm assuming that this includes keeping my _entire_ family safe?" he asks and I remember something that Harry had told me long ago.

_Dumbledore told me that Regulus only joined the dark side because his family was threatened. When Voldemort killed his mum anyway, he started looking for a way to get back at the man that he had promised his allegiance too. He ended up stealing the locket from the cave and attempting to destroy it. He was killed before he could avenge his mother's death._

"Of course your entire family, Regulus, you'll never have to join." Obsidian eyes stare back at me in surprise before they narrow with the realization of how much I knew.


	7. Chapter 7

While struggling through twenty-one credits this semester, I still try to update as much as possible. While there is no strict schedule, I do write as much as I can. Of course, this means that when I do post a chapter, I hope to at least get some feedback. Yes, I am the type of author that is fueled by reviews. This of course means that the more reviews I get the more often I update. So- if you don't get the hint by now, please review on the chapters when you read them. I implore you.


	8. Chapter 8

He stared back at me definitely for a moment before shifting his gaze to the dancing flames of the fire. I breathe out softly as I try to relax for a moment: I had been tensed and ready for action the moment that I had landed in this reality. It was quiet for a while, I guess he was trying to think things through and I had no intention of interrupting him. I felt like Regulus could be my chance at doing everything that I wanted and needed to do.

"How old are you? What's your name?" He asks suddenly and I blink at him in surprise, I mean really, he knew I was a time traveler and the first thing he thinks about asking me is my age?

"I've just turned sixteen in June and I'm Hermione Fawley." I inform him after a brief moment of thought—the Fawley line did only just come to England in the late 90s after all—and he nods for a moment. I watch curiously as his expression changes from uptight to relieved within a couple of seconds.

"I guess it's time that I introduce you to my mother and father—they'll only consider it rude if I keep you to myself." His eyes almost twinkle with amusement as I attempt to conceal my confusion with a scowl.

"What in the world are you talking about?" I ask quietly and he stands up suddenly, stretching his -hand out as an offer to help me to my feet and I take it slowly.

Once I'm on my feet, he keeps his hand in mine and I wonder for a moment if I'd made a mistake to think that Regulus could help my situation. He laughs at my expression before dropping my hand and leaning towards me so that he could whisper in my ear.

"Mum once told me that if I ever found a suitable girl to bring home that she could spend the holidays with us. It seems like a reasonably good excuse as to why you're staying in the house and mum might actually stop threatening a marriage contract." He informs me and I can't help but to smile up at him as I realize how wonderfully fitting his idea was.

"Let's not forget how much it will mess with your brother." I giggle quietly as he nods with a wicked smirk on his face and offers me his arm.

I place my hand in the crook of his elbow without another word and let him lead me down the stairs into the dining room. We stand in the entrance for a moment and I bite my lip anxiously as I see that the Marauders were already sitting down at the table—we were the last to arrive. I peek up at Regulus's face and see that he's staring at me as well. I sigh softly as I feel my cheeks beginning to redden and he smirks at my sudden nervousness.

"Mother, Father, I'd like you to meet Hermione." I watch wearily as every head in the room turns to look at me, four of which look dumbfounded. "If it's quite alright with you, I've asked her to spend the holidays with us." I watch his mother's eyes light up and inwardly frown, she couldn't have wanted him to find a girl to marry at this age could she?  
"Oh yes, I'll just have Kreacher put another setting on the table. I'm sure Regulus has told you about his family, but nevertheless introductions must be properly made." She states before standing up from the table and walking towards me.

Regulus drops his arm allowing my hand to drop right before his mother appears before me. She takes both of my hands in hers and holds them as I twitch nervously; she scrutinizes my face for a moment before allowing a smile to appear. "I am Walburga Antila Black and my husband is Orion Cetus." She says this and I swallow nervously.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you Mrs. Black, I am Hermione Rosaline Fawley." I force myself to smile at her and she nods gently before allowing me to have my hands back.

"Come, Hermione, let us eat." Regulus says softly, just loud enough for his mother and father to hear, I notice that his father shoots him a pleased look.

As Regulus pushes my chair in at the table, I notice that I am not in the best place to be sitting. With Regulus to my right and Remus to my left, Sirius is—of course—sitting directly in front of me. I look down immediately as I realize that he is openly glaring at me, Remus and James, however, are sympathetic. Well as sympathetic as marauders could be, I feel like pummeling them both when they begin to ask me questions in order to make me feel uncomfortable.

"So, Hermione, right?" James starts pleasantly enough and I answer him with a nod. "When did you and Regulus start dating?" he looks openly pleased by his question and I realize that Regulus's mum and dad are listening in as well.

I panic for a moment—I mean, really, who did fate think I was? I couldn't just continue to make things up on the spot! I look to Regulus for help and he smirks at me as he realizes my dilemma. He finishes chewing his food and wipes his mouth properly before answering for me.

"Hermione and I began dating at the beginning of the school year in November. We knew each other before, of course, but it was in November that we took the relationship a step further." I give him a brief smile before nodding along with his story, he was much better at improvising then I evidently, because I would never have thought of that.

"That's interesting, Regulus, but why haven't we heard of her before this?" His father speaks up and I feel a pulse of fear run through me as I detect that he is slightly angry.

"I wanted to make sure that we were compatible in our new relationship, I also needed to make sure that she was suitable enough to extend an invitation too." I notice that his mother is openly staring at me now and I twitch uncomfortably in my seat.

"I assume that you are in Slytherin?" She asks quietly and I pat my mouth for a moment before answering.

"Of course, Mrs. Black, I was raised to date only within my house after all." Of course, she would never know that I was a past Gryffindor or that I was a muggleborn, it seemed only right to speak as if I was pureblooded anyways.

"Good, good." She responds. "Regulus, your father and I wish to speak to you in the family room after dinner." She adds as an afterthought and I feel him flinch beside me.

Dinner continues after that, but the tension was so thick in the room that I can barely eat for worry. I lay my fork and knife on the plate after I've eaten only a quarter of it—aware that I am being watched the entire time. I take a sip of my water and look down at my twitching hands as everyone else continues to eat. Even though, I knew that I would have to take up a new identity, I hadn't been prepared for the amount of information that I would have to come up with immediately. I wish that I had thought to research more before making my trip.

"I notice that Hermione is done with her dinner, Remus, since you are finished as well, would you escort her upstairs?" Mr. Black seems to be asking, but I realize that he is telling Remus to do it more than anything.

"Of course, Mr. Black, it would be a pleasure." He stands from the table and slides his own chair in before pulling mine out for me.

"Thank you for dinner Mr. and Mrs. Black, it was very lovely." I find it within myself to smile pleasantly at them before following a silent Remus out of the room and up the staircase.


	9. Chapter 9

"What in the hell are you doing?" Remus mutters as soon as the door to the library is shut and it's safe to talk.

"I'm surviving." I answer him flatly and sit down by the fire.

"Right, surviving, because that's what you're going to do when you come face to face with the you-know-who!" he exclaims as he stands in front of me—effectively ruining my view of the fireplace.

"Look, it's not like Regulus and I are actually dating. It was the only way that I could stay in the house since your friend refuses to believe I'm on the light side of the war." I remind him quietly.

"He'll come around, you say that you know him in the future, so you should know that he'll come around eventually." Remus states this and I feel myself getting angrier.

"Remus, you were the only person in that room that believed me. Other than you and Regulus, I am entirely alone." I whisper this to him and he goes silent for a moment. "I know that you think Regulus is a bad person, but he isn't yet. I've told him that I'm going to help him keep his entire family out of the war and it's really what I need to be doing." I sigh and close my eyes for a moment as I feel myself getting a headache.

"You said earlier that you came back so that you could make the future a better place—do you think that you could still do that with your new role?" he asks quietly, somehow subconsciously knowing that this was a secret worth whispering about.

"If I can get Regulus and his family to stop following the Dark Lord then so many things will change for the better." I mummer to myself more than anything, I wonder briefly if he even heard me. "He doesn't want to join, you know?" I raise my eyes to Remus's curiously and I'm meet with slightly shocked grey orbs.

"He doesn't?" he repeats and I nod.

"Soon—the dark lord will ask him to join and he will refuse. In my past, he joins because his mother is murdered and he fears the same for his father and brother." I say this softly as if it were the most precious of information—in all reality it was.

"Really?" I hear the familiar voice behind me and shut my eyes as I realize that he must have been listening for quite some time.

"Really, Sirius." The tone comes out harsher than its supposed to and I wince slightly. "I'm changing it though." I whisper softly.

"Pray tell, _Hermione_, how are you going to do that?" Sirius's tone suggest that he is slightly amused by what I'm saying and my eyes angrily dart to his.

"Did you know that right this very moment, your mother and father are speaking to Regulus about a marriage contract to me?" I ask him and his eyes widen before they narrow slightly. "Also, did you know that Narcissa's about to get engaged to Lucius?" I offer him more information and his nose twitches as it does when he's angry but refuses to show it.

"What does that matter? So that's that then? You're going to get engaged to my brother and that's just going to fix everything?" He demands loudly and I find myself standing chest-to-chest with my ex-mentor.

"Sirius—have you even read a bloody book about pureblood marriage contracts?" I ask him, "I almost guarantee that you haven't." I mummer quietly as I look into his angry eyes.

"Why would I read into that pureblood crap?" he demands and I find myself rolling my eyes at him—I notice that this angers him more.

"It may help you in the future you dolt, besides that specific studying has helped me in this situation. For example; did you know that parents can't ask about blood status in a marriage contract or that several families were relinquished from the war simple because a marriage contract forbade them to be involved?" I rant at him until I run out of breath and it's only then that I notice that he'd began shaking quietly and that he looked slightly murderous.

"Padfoot, you need to calm down." Remus supplies helpfully, but Sirius only glances at his friend before glaring back into my eyes.

"Why in the hell should I believe you? What gives you the bloody right to even talk to me this way? I should go downstairs and expose you as the traitor that you are." He grounds out and I swallow softly before taking a step backwards.

"Sirius, please—I'm only trying to do what's right. Your brother and I aren't really even together." I plead with him to understand, but I'm almost positive that nothing I say is being listened to.

"I don't believe you. You know who you remind me of? My bloody cousin Bellatrix with your wild hair and evil ways." His words cut through me to the quick and I find myself tearing up at the mention of his cousin.

"You mean the same person that did this?" I question him softly and un-glamor my arm so that he could see the ugly word written into my skin.

There is absolute silence throughout the library as Sirius's eyes remain on my scarred arm and I find myself quietly crying at the memory of how it got there. The door opens rather loudly and I hear a quiet growl as whoever it is takes in the scene before them. A moment later I feel myself being pulled away from Sirius and find myself being pushed behind someone.

"Whether you like it or not Sirius, Hermione is here to stay. She's proven to me that she's here with good intentions and I believe that she's shown you enough things that you should believe her as well. Nevertheless, you've caused her pain and she's crying so do not go near my soon-to-be fiancée again." Regulus's harsh tone as he protects me only seems to make me cry harder as I watch Sirius leave.

It's only quiet for a moment before I find myself being placed on the couch in front of the fire. I notice Remus leaving quietly, but say nothing about it, afraid that it would only make the tension even more awkward. Regulus sits himself beside me and we sit there for a long while, just watching the flame of the fire.

XXX

It had been three days since what I'd taken to calling 'The Incident' and things were slowly ebbing back into normalcy. Well, as normal as one could get in my situation anyway. I would go back and forth between the library and my designated bedroom only stopping to eat when Regulus felt the need to remind me to do so. It was as if I had suddenly lost what little of my mind that I had left, Remus kept saying that I might be having a hard time with adjusting in this time period. Either way, I tended to always be in my room or in the library; it helped me to think better. Regulus would take it upon himself to sit with me for a while each day and we would talk about the most mundane things—I think he was just trying to keep my mind off of everything for a while. When Regulus wasn't around, I soon discovered that Remus would soon join me in whatever I was doing. I began to suspect that they had a system going on and it wasn't until I began to truly pay attention that I noticed that they truly did. I'm not entirely sure why it helped me to feel better, but just knowing that there was at least two people in this world that cared about me, helped me to get out of my so-called funk.

XXX

A violent burst of light jolts me from my sleep and I groan, instantly rolling over in an attempt to block the sunlight out for just a little while longer. I hear Remus chuckle as he opens the windows in my room and jerks the blankets off the bed.

"I thought that you'd be an easy sleeper, but the incessant tapping of the owl at your window was driving me mad and you still weren't awake. So wake up and answer the bloody thing!" He's smirking the entire time he says this—I can't help but to notice how 0uch he sounded like Molly for the moment

"Yes, Mum." I answer him crankily, choosing to throw a pillow at him as punishment, he ducks and it hits the wall behind him.

I slide off of the bed and push my hair out of the way for a moment as I take in the rather regal looking bird sitting silently at the window sill. I can't help but to giggle at the fact that the poor owl looked confused.

"I wonder if his parents even know that their owl is just going to the back of their house to deliver the mail?" I ask quietly and giggle again as I notice Remus looking at the owl with a rather amused face.

I pluck the envelope from the owl and take a moment to feel him a bit of owl food that had been in the room when I'd arrived. The owl flies off but I leave the windows open as I look at the rather bulky mail in my hands. I swallow quietly as I realize what this is and from the look on Remus's face, he must recognize it as well.

"I'll just read this, sign it, then by tomorrow, it'll be over." I whisper my plan to myself, well aware of the fact that I'm making it sound like I was planning my own death.

"You know, you don't have to go through with this." A voice speaks from the doorway and I can't help but to glance up in shock.

"Sirius?" I ask as if this person standing before me couldn't be the same person that had insulted me days earlier.

"Yes, I'm still me, dove. Anyways, you don't have to go through with this thing with Regulus. I mean you could do something else to change the future." He remarks easily and I frown at him for a moment.  
"What in the world are you talking about?" I sigh as I realize that he must have a plan or he wouldn't of came to speak to me.

"Marry James or I, instead." He offers quickly with a gleam in his eyes and I feel my eyes narrow at my past mentor.

"I can't marry you when you'll be moving out next year and James is already on the right side of the war." I remind him with a slight tone to my voice informing him that I didn't like his plan.

"Well if you married me, why would I move out? I mean Regulus would never join up and everything would be the same." He says this as if he's thought about it for quite a while.

"What are you trying to do Sirius, steal my girl?" Regulus snarls as he pushes past his older brother into the room and comes to my side.

"Oh please, you and her both have said that you two aren't actually together." Sirius rolls his eyes at the very idea.

"Padfoot, I think maybe, that you've gotten it wrong." Remus speaks quietly, not wanting to start a fight. "They're not together, but both of them are very open to the idea. In fact, they're pretty much together, but not officially." He states this as if its fact and Regulus nods his head in confirmation of it.

I watch Sirius's face as a storm of emotions crosses it, before it finally decides to look defeated. He looks into my eyes for a moment and I can see that he doesn't want this to happen, but that he's given up trying to fight it. I find myself frowning and wanting to hug him to make it better, which is utterly ridiculous with how he's been treating me. Regulus takes the opportunity to take the letter from my hands and open it in order to diffuse the tension somewhat.

"I'm assuming that you'd like to read this alone?" He asks with an eyebrow raised and I can't stop myself from giving him a gentle smile.

"No, it's quite alright with everyone being in here. In fact, I'd like everyone to help me with this before they leave." I inform him and he nods at my decision. "Sirius, I know that you don't particularly love the idea of this, but I need you to help make sure that this contract is foolproof." I whisper and he answers me by flopping onto my mattress.

"At your disposal, madam." He states this in a rather weird accent, "Remus, go get James will you?" he asks a moment later.

I situate myself at the head of the bed so that I could read and write easily while Regulus lies directly opposite of me. I'm not sure if he's aware of what he's done, but every single time I look up, I find myself looking into his eyes and I can't help the blush rising in my cheeks. The mattress creaks as two more bodies are added to it, Remus and James both choosing to flop down beside Sirius. It's only when everyone's here that I notice that my hands are shaking slightly and that I may be a bit nervous.

"Read it aloud will you?" Remus asks nicely and I nod before unfolding the parchments and looking at the contract for the first time.

_Dear Mr. and Mrs. Fawley, _

_My wife and I have been made aware of our son's (Regulus Arcturus Black) interest in your daughter (Hermione Rosaline Fawley). The relationship appears amicable and both of the children are happy. That being said—we are prepared to do whatever is necessary to make this relationship permanent. We have been made aware of your social status and the like and find it agreeable with the House of Black. Enclosed is a marriage contract should you feel that the relationship of our children could evolve into love. _

_Orion Cetus Black and Walburga Antila Black of the House of Black_

_MARRIAGE CONTRACT OF HERMIONE ROSALINE FAWLEY AND REGULUS ARCTURUS BLACK_

_Upon Agreeing to the clauses outline below, Hermione Rosaline Fawley is to wed Regulus Arcturus Black and the Houses of Fawley and Black shall forever be combined. All clauses in this contract are to be held in the upmost of law and an unbreakable vow is to be placed upon the signers. Each parent and child involved shall sign the contract in order to avoid any technicalities._

_ARTICLE 1: Hermione Rosaline Fawley and Regulus Arcturus Black must be wed within two months of Regulus Arcturus Black graduating Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. _

_SECTION 1: H.R. Fawley may continue her education after being wed, but is to be tutored from in the House of Black. _

_SECTION II: H.R. Fawley will be allowed to find an appropriate job outside of the home as long as R.A. Black agrees with her choice. _

_ARTICLE 2: The House of Fawley is most presumably light, therefore the House of Black shall be presumably light as well. _

_SECTION I: No member of the House of Black shall join He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Name's army, in any shape or form. _

_SECTION II: No member of the House of Black shall be in harm's way because of this decision, the House of Fawley shall pledge to keep them safe from harm's way. _

_SECTION III: No member of the House of Black shall demean or belittle muggleborns or half- bloods from the moment that this contract is signed. _

_ARTICLE 3: H.R. Fawley and R.A. Black must produce at least one heir of the Black fortune before their third anniversary. _

_SECTION I: H. R. Fawley and R.A. Black both are open to procreate until they produce at least one son. _

_SECTION II: H.R. Fawley and R.A. Black both shall not use any form of contraceptives in an attempt to stop childbearing. _

_SECTION III: Godparents will be chosen for all produced children, so that if something were to occur to both H.R. Fawley and R.A. Black, said children will be taken care of. _

_SECTION IV: H.R. Fawley and R.A. Black shall produce at least two children for the House of Black so that the line will continue. _

_ARTICLE 4: R.A. Black shall keep all decisions of the House of Black unless otherwise stated in this contract. _

_SECTION I: H.R. Fawley shall help R.A. Black in all decisions of the House of Black as seen fit. _

_ARTICLE 5: If death were to occur to either H.R. Fawley or R.A. Black this contract shall be null and void. _

_House of Fawley House of Black_

_X_ X Walburga Antila Black_

_X_ XOrion Cetus Black_

_X_ XRegulus Arcturus Black_

CHAPTER NINEXXX


	10. Chapter 10

Now that I am finally free enough to update on a normal basis, I will do at least a chapter a week. I am kinda feeling let down my reviews. No other reason but that they have slowed down to a trickle-one or two- for every chapter that I add. Am I really not that good of an author? Or is it just that every is busy? Anyways, please review, and I promise I will update again soon!

On an entirely unrelated topic, I do have another time-travel story that I am working on at the same time as Crimson Raindrops. The title of it is Le Bon Temps and it is a Remus/Sirius/Hermione pairing. If you haven't looked at it yet, please do! I need all the opinions that I can get!

Thank you-JazzJaide


	11. Chapter 11

"You act like you just signed your own death warrant you know." Regulus muses as I glare out of the window in the sitting room.

"I feel like perhaps I have you know." I speak quietly when I say this but I hear Regulus' intake of breath and can feel him glaring at the back of my head.

"If you felt that way then why did you sign the contract?" I roll my eyes at him knowing that he cannot see it before turning around.

"It's not the contract that has me feeling this way Regulus. I just… I'm not entirely sure if this will change all that needs to be changed." I whisper to him and his eyes narrow at me for a moment before stepping in front of me.

"Seeing as how we're betrothed now can I know what else you plan on changing?" He asks this simply and I frown at him, he's never been this curious before about what I needed to do.

"I…" I swallow quietly and shut my eyes as images of Professor Snape and the Marauders appear in my head and then a flash later, Peter Pettigrew. "I will tell you more later when we are in private, but as of right now… Regulus, I need to tell James that Peter Pettigrew isn't nearly as close of a friend as he thinks he is." I whisper and he gets that sort of snarky smirk on his face and I can't help but to smile at him for a moment at his response.

"Do I get to be there when you tell him?" he asks seriously and I giggle for a moment as he offers his arm to me so that we could head up to the study—I needed to write a very important letter after all.

XXX

With the Marauders finally gone from the house under orders to go to Potter Manor, I soon found myself alone with Regulus more often than not. We did have quite a bit in common and in truth, he reminded me a bit of Harry, but when his mum or dad was in the room the already awkward situation got even worse. Kreacher, I discovered, was actually quite pleasant to be around and had taken to decorating the entire manor for the holidays with a vigor that closely resembled Dobby's. I couldn't help but to giggle every time that I actually saw the house elf doing something nice. This was what I was doing as I sat in sitting room in front of the fire watching in pure amusement as Kreacher began decorating a Christmas tree. Memories flash in my mind of all the other holidays that I had spent in Grimmauld Place and I find myself missing what I used to call as the 'Weasley Holidays'. A hand grips my shoulder and I flinch instinctively only to look up and see Regulus looking down at me curiously.

"Are you alright?" He asks me gently and I feel myself tearing up after a moment.

"I'm fine, I was just thinking that this was my first holiday here and I'm not even sure that I'll get any gifts." I answer him truthfully and feel his hand lift from my shoulder only for him to come and sit beside me.

"You'll have gifts. I've gotten you two so far and I know those friends of yours will get you more." He mummers without looking at me.

"Regulus, what's wrong?" I find myself asking him and watch him frown into the fireplace for a long while.

"Tomorrow night is the Annual Malfoy Holiday Ball and mother has just informed me that we are required to go." He hisses this quietly as if the very idea was preposterous and I feel a shiver of fear run through me at the very idea of having to deal with _that_ family again.

"O-Okay?" I find myself stuttering and he slides his hand through his hair as if the simple action could keep him calm.

"We will, of course, be presented as betrothed. I'm sure that the questioning will begin shortly after our entrance." He states quietly, "I almost refused mother's request that we go, but when she brought up the contract and how none of us could join up with you-know-who and that her _reputation_ would go into shreds if we didn't explain ourselves, I had to give in." he explains to me quietly and while slightly terrified of having to face the very people that tortures me in the future, I can't help but to smile at how obvious Regulus loves his mother.

"It's fine, Regulus. I'll just have to prepare myself." I assure him softly and he turns his head so that I can see how angry he truly was.

"I didn't want you to have to deal with those people. At all." He grounds out, his jaw set and I can tell that he is frustrated beyond belief at the situation.

"You'll be with me the entire time?" I ask him and he nods at me without a thought.

"If I have to attend to something, then I will make sure someone is with you. My friend, Severus, will be there and I trust that he will watch over you if I cannot. It's important that you get to know him anyway, he'll be coming back with us after the ball and staying throughout the rest of school." I blink in surprise, but he continues to ramble on. "He doesn't particularly feel like joining up either, you know? With him being here, no one could force him into anything." He says this fiercely and I can't help but note how protective he is over his friends.

"I know him already." I say this softly and it's his turn to blink at me in surprise, "Severus was my potions professor when I went to Hogwarts." I inform him and giggle a little bit at his shocked reaction before continuing. "I'll help him to have a better future." I assure him softly and he nods at me after a moment.

"He doesn't even like the first years." He mutters to himself and I can't help but to smile as the snarky professor appeared in my mind.

"Oh, he hates his students. Well, everyone but the Slytherins of course." I shiver slightly and without realizing what I'm doing, I move closer to Regulus.

"Tell me more." He whispers quietly and I know that he's speaking about my time in the future.

"Your cousin, Andromeda?" I mumble softly, "She'll soon marry a muggle and have a daughter." I find myself speaking barely above a whisper as Regulus tenses up at the information.

"Okay." He states simply and I can tell that he's fighting with himself not to say something offensive; recently we'd gotten into quite a few arguments over muggle and muggleborn rights. "More." His tone is demanding, but I ignore it and give him his wish.

"Dumbledore becomes headmaster next year." I whisper and feel Regulus's arm wrap around my shoulders and pull me closer to his body and I bite my lip in nervousness, this was the first time that we'd actually touched other than holding hands in front of his parents.

"He deserves it." He mummers. "He's practically doing all the work anyway and Dippet's done nothing at all."

"You like Dumbledore?" I find myself surprised at the information; I just wasn't used to the idea of a Slytherin liking the headmaster.

"He's always been good to me." He answers simply and I smile at him for a moment before looking back into the fire.

We stay like that for a while, his arm around my shoulders so that I was leaning against him, and watch Kreacher set up the tree. For the first time since I had arrived in this time, I was content just to sit and relax for a while with Regulus. There was no need to move, speak, or to even look at one another, we simply just spent time with each other. I couldn't help but think about the fact that even though I had only been here for a couple of weeks, that I could already tell that I belonged more in this time period than in the one that I was born into originally. I felt myself relax against my fiancée and barely shut my eyes when I feel him pulling me closer against him as the fire grows green and someone steps out of it.

"Hmm?" I mumble and attempt to step up more but Regulus's arm falls around my waist and I can feel him physically keeping me from moving.

"Bella, Cissa, what a surprise." Regulus's tone says that he is actually quite surprised that they've shown up and I flinch slightly at the names.

"Regulus, dear cousin, who is this?" I hear a quiet but snooty voice ask and sigh quietly against his robes at the question; I just knew that I'd be answering that more times than I can count soon enough.

"Bellatrix! Narcissa!" Regulus's mother comes in the room and I slowly sit up and rub my eyes in an attempt to wake up. "How nice of you to show up early! I'll have Kreacher set your bedrooms up for you before dinner so you won't have to worry about a thing." She greets them both with a kiss to the cheek and turns to leave the room quickly, obviously having better things to do than to entertain a bunch of teenagers.

"Well, are you going to introduce us or not?" The shrill voice of my arch enemy fills the room and I wince, Regulus grips my waist tightly in response, I'd already told—and showed—him what his cousin had done.

"Bellatrix, Cissa, I'd like you to meet my fiancée, Hermione Fawley." I smile up at them with what I hope to be a happy expression, choosing not to say anything to them myself.

"You're engaged and you didn't even owl us!" The blonde haired girl of the two screeches and I bite my lip to keep myself from laughing at her reaction.

"Cissa, you were supposed to find out tomorrow at the Ball. We've been keeping it under wraps for the special occasion." Regulus explains with a bit of amusement in his voice.

"Oh, Regulus, it's going to be _amazing_. I mean, I've been waiting for a chance for so long and now that I'm officially engaged to a Lestrange, he's wanting to meet with me!" Bellatrix smiles widely and I go still at what she's saying.

"What do you mean? Is _he_ going to be there?" Regulus asks quietly, his cousin only wildly nodding in her happiness.

"You'll get to meet him yourself soon!" She almost squeals and I look down at my hands for a moment, my stomach turning at the very idea that in a night's time, I would be at a party with Voldemort.

Nerves get the best of me and I find myself fighting my emotions, I did not want to get upset in front of these particular girls. Regulus, however, sensed my predicament and came to my rescue without me having to say anything at all.

"I don't think I will actually—I'd prefer to continue living that is." He states with a smirk on his face before glancing down at me and frowning at how nervous I seemed to be.

"What do you mean you won't meet him? You have too!" Bellatrix whines and I notice that Narcissa has gone quite throughout this entire ordeal—choosing to watch it rather than be a part of it.

"Actually, I can't. The Fawley family is distinctly on the light side of the war and our marriage contract has forbid me or any of my immediate family to join." He explains and I flinch as accusing eyes land on me.

"Whatever did you choose her for anyway, Regulus? It's not like she's exceptional looking and she hasn't said a word since we've arrived so I'm guessing that she's not that brilliant either!" Her cutting remark sends a pain through my chest as she voices the very same worries that I'd been thinking about recently.

"Bella, this is not-"Narcissa starts to say something, but goes quiet as I stand up silently.

"Hermione?" Regulus whispers quietly and I can tell that he's actually quite worried about what I'm going to do.

"I think I'm going to go to my rooms for a while, Regulus, please come get me when you feel the need." I mummer and he stands up quite quickly at what I'm saying.

"There's no reason to leave, Bellatrix is not worth-"he starts to reason with me but his mother arrives in the room at the same time that I am trying to take my leave.

"What is going on here?" She demands quietly as she stands in the doorway and looks into the room—effectively blocking my way out.

"Mother, Bellatrix it seems is upset over one of the clauses in the marriage contract. She has upset Hermione enough for her to want to leave." Regulus states and without even looking at him, I can tell that he is far past angry and well into the region of utterly pissed.

"Bellatrix Black!" His mother screeches and everyone in the room flinches at the volume of it. "What doesn't involve you should not upset you and to make matters worse, you've upset my future daughter-in-law. She can still withdrawal her contract and if she does then you will tarnish our name!" I watch as she rants her own niece about upsetting me.

A hand wraps itself around my own and I look at Regulus only to see him worriedly looking at me. I find myself lost in thought as I look into his eyes and can't help but compare them to the only other onyx eyes that have looked at me with that much care. I find myself running a quick checklist through my mind, comparing Regulus to Viktor only to smile in victory at how much my current companion won over the latter.

"I'm fine." I assure him softly and give him a hug and a kiss on the cheek to prove it, effectively kissing him for the first time ever.

"Good. Why don't you and Cissa go upstairs to your bedroom, I'm sure that she can help you with the surprise that you've got lying on your bed." He smirks and I find myself understanding that he was giving me a way out of the room and smile in thankfulness.

"Come get me for dinner?" I ask him softly and he nods his answer before leaning down and kissing the tip of my nose gently, obviously enjoying the fact that he could now kiss me, I had started it after all.


	12. Chapter 12

Narcissa follows me up the stairs without a word as if she knew that I needed to adjust to her presence before I could truly speak to her. We make it into the third floor hallway before she chooses to say anything at all and she chooses the moment right before I opened my door. My hand falls down as she whispers something to me quickly and I turn back around to her in order to make sure what she is saying.

"Don't bother with Bella, she's ridiculous when it comes to her Lord." Cissa repeats quietly and I smile gently at her, still unsure if she was being genuinely nice or if she was just taking advantage of the situation.

"I just don't want Regulus to get hurt is all." I mummer to her and she nods to me before looking at the doorknob with amazing scrutiny.

"I feel the same about my fiancée as well." She whispers almost too softly and then gestures for me to open the door.

I grip the door handle tightly and open the door without another thought, I was excited to see what exactly my surprise was. I step in quickly and freeze once I realize what or rather who exactly is sitting on my bed. Beside me, Narcissa seems rather confused at why I'm behaving the way that I am, but honestly she didn't know what was going through my mind at the moment.

"Hello." He greets me quietly and reality starts to sink in as to who was actually in my bedroom.

"Hello, I'm Hermione." I introduce myself and shut the door so that I could focus on breathing for a moment.

"I'm Severus Snape, I assume your Regulus's betrothed?" he asks simply as he stands and looks at me up and down for a moment, analyzing me as if I was one of his experiments.

"Yes, I'm soon to be Mrs. Black." I confirm as his eyes shift from my body to my eyes and then eventually onto Narcissa.

"It's nice to be you Hermione, Narcissa, you came early." He seems surprised at this particular news and she nods.

"I did, Bella heard the news and just couldn't wait, I felt that I needed to come in order to diffuse the tension somewhat." She explains and then glances at me quickly, "Besides, Severus, you have to admit that you were curious to meet the one that's swept Regulus off of his feet." She smirks and I notice Severus looking at her quizzically.

"Swept off his feet? I wasn't aware that Regulus ever got off of his high horse long enough to be swept up." He states this as if he was truly serious, but Narcissa giggles and I notice his lip quirk subtly.

"I got off my horse the moment I set eyes on my girl." Regulus's voice states amusedly from behind me and I flinch slightly as his arms slide around my waist.

"Interesting." Severus drawls and I lean back against Regulus's chest as I study my fingernails—habitually noticing that I didn't have a ring on my finger yet.

"Yes, interesting. Anyways, Hermione, Severus will be with you tomorrow night whenever I cannot be. Cissa's promised to keep an eye on you as well, that way you won't have to integrate yourself with anyone that is… well wrongly associated." Regulus mummers and I nod at him, my mind focused more on my fingers than the conversation.

Without a word, he reaches up and takes my left hand out of the air and grips it in his gently. I feel a blush rise on my face and mortification settles into my stomach as he kisses my hand. An awkward silence ensues as everyone looks at my tomato red face with amusement. I shuffle within his grip and stare at the ground for a while, not entirely sure when the conversation should start again.

"Now that we've witnessed the fact that Hermione turns as red as a Gryffindor, can we go down to dinner? I'm sure Bella's steaming mad by now." Cissa mummers and I grip Regulus's hand tightly as he nods before leading us down the stairs once more.

Along the way, I can feel Severus watching me from behind and I'm not entirely sure if it's a good thing or a bad thing that he is analyzing me. Mrs. and Mr. Black are already sitting at their respective places at the ends of the table as we file in and sit in the remaining seats. I find myself sitting to the left of Regulus's mom with Severus right in front of me. Regulus pushes my chair in quickly and sits down before looking across the table to his very annoyed cousin.

"Bella, I was just telling Hermione a little more about the ball tomorrow." Regulus says this as pleasantly as he can with his teeth clenched together.

House elves appear with a crack and place multiple dishes on the table and then sitting a salad in front of each person. I tune out the conversation that Regulus and Bellatrix are having in order to focus on getting my thoughts in order. I hadn't expected Severus to be here so soon, I definitely hadn't expected him to be so inclined to watch my every movement. Glancing at Regulus, I wonder if he noticed that his friend won't stop staring at me, but choose not to say anything about it. When Regulus gets angry, it's very, very hard to get him to calm back down and to think things through rationally.

"Aren't you going to eat Hermione?" Mrs. Black asks curiously and I glance around the table only to notice that everyone had nearly finished their salads already.

"Of course, I apologize; I was just lost in my thoughts." I admit quietly and earn a quick smile as I pick up my salad fork and begin to eat.

"Do you do that often Hermione? It hardly seems normal." Bella asks this kindly, but I realize that she is insulting me at the same time.

"Sometimes, I begin to think about my family and friends and I get lost in thought is all. It is my fault though, when Regulus offered his home to me over the holidays I just had to accept." I answer her and Regulus snorts beside me at my politeness.

"Oh yes, I forget that you and Regulus are betrothed at times, it's just so new to me. It would make things easier, of course, if you would actually be worthy of receiving a ring." Bella smarts off quietly and glances at her aunt to make sure that she didn't hear before smiling widely at me for getting away with her insult.

"The time will come Bellatrix when you realize that a ring is just an item, it's what feelings you have with your loved one that is most important." I reply before taking another bite of my salad and pushing it away.

"You've hardly eaten at all. Are you sure you're healthy?" She retorts angrily and I bite my lip as I try to find a way to answer her without seeming pissy or rude.

"Once you get to know her, you'll see that our Hermione has a little system when it comes to eating. She eats just a bit of everything so that she can get full while still tasting everything." Mr. Black speaks up and I notice Bellatrix's eyes widen at his words.

"Your Hermione?" She asks quickly and without thought.

"Of course, Bellatrix, she is our Hermione. At the end of the year, she will be the new Mrs. Black after all." Regulus's mum speaks up and I notice that everyone is staring at Bella or myself.

"She doesn't even have a ring yet, Auntie!" Bellatrix shrieks and the anxiety that I had felt before about the subject resurfaces easily.

"Hermione has spent this entire holiday with Regulus, the documents have been signed, she is betrothed to your cousin with or without a ring." Mrs. Black speaks sharply, "I'm surprised that you are so against this union, Bellatrix, considering Regulus will be rising higher than you as far as fortune and connections are concerned." I bite my lip in order to contain my laughter as the evil witch is publicly reprimanded at the table.

"I'm not against the union, Auntie. I've just been hit with a bit of protectiveness is all." She tries to reconcile quickly but there is no chance of the subject dropping.

"Yet, you wouldn't have been so protective if Sirius had been the one to betroth." Mrs. Black speaks quietly and I keep my eyes on my lap as I realize that this was getting into dangerous territory.

"Sirius is not the same caliber of wizard as Regulus is and frankly, I don't understand why you would sign your better son off to some witch that—" Regulus stands abruptly at the table and I glance up only to realize that he was quite angry.

When angry, Regulus's features change and it's almost like he turns into another person. His eyes grow darker and his face more sallow, all the while keeping the high jawline and nearly wild hair that marked him a Black. His jaw ticks as he stares down at his cousin angrily for a moment and I wonder what is about to happen. Bellatrix, I notice, has gone deathly silent and even seems a bit more pale than normal. I place my napkin on my plate before getting up from my seat and standing beside my betrothed silently.

"I am quite sick of you speaking ill about my future wife Bellatrix. If you continue to do so, you will not be permitted entrance to the wedding or our future residence. Also, Sirius is as much of a wizard as I am, dare I say that he is even more of a wizard than me considering what he has gone through in comparison to me." His voice is deadly quiet with a hint of steel behind his words as if he knew that what he was saying would be considered law.

"Regulus?" my voice finally catches up to me and I grip his forearm gently in order to get him to look at me. "Please?" It seems that I can't speak more than monosyllabic answers, but he understands what I'm saying.

"Mother may Hermione and I be excused from the dinner? I am sorry for my outburst but I felt like what I said needed to be done." He speaks so quietly that I can barely hear him, but his mother nods silently so I assume that she can.

I'm lead out of the dining room and up the stairs silently, I let Regulus take me to wherever he wants without a word of protest and find myself in the library where we had first met. He drops my hand and I stand near the door watching him as he begins to pace back and forth in front of the fire place. It's silent for a couple of minutes as I watch him trying to control his temper before he says anything. As he takes his time in calming down, I look down at my fingers once more and play with them—trying to distract myself from the fact that I had just caused another dramatic dinner. I must have been too focused on my fingers because Regulus is holding my face before I realize that he had even stopped pacing.

"You're not regretting this?" he asks me softly and I can't help but to notice how dark his eyes were at that moment—was it because of how much emotion they contained?

"No." I answer simply and he looks into my eyes for a moment before his lips are on mine.

The moment that our lips touch, every coherent thought seemingly flies out of my head only to be replaced with how much I loved doing this with him. My hand grips his cloak tightly as he pulls me against him and lets his tongue sweep against my bottom lip. I find myself leaning against him as our kiss hardens and turns fierce. Loosing myself into my emotions, my arms slip around his neck in an attempt to get even closer to his body. His lips separate from mine slowly only to find a new spot on my neck where he kisses me gently for a moment before biting down. I whine almost immediately, but chose not to move away from him as he begins to kiss the pain away.

"Marking your territory?" A snarky voice questions from behind me and I stiffen almost immediately, Regulus holds me to him and I find that it's easier to hide my blushing face in his robes than anywhere else.

"Something like that." Regulus answers softly, "How'd you get out of dinner anyway?" he asks his friend quietly.

"Your mum let me leave before dessert." Severus states simply and I hear him walk around us to the couch.

"Ah." Regulus mummers and I lift my face from his cloaks to see him looking down at me in amusement, he kisses my nose once before dropping his arms from around me.

He goes to sit in front of the fire with his best friend and I follow, curious as to what Severus Snape would talk about when in a casual setting. Regulus pulls me down beside him on the couch and I find myself seated between the two boys. I curl my legs up underneath me and lean into Regulus's chest like earlier as the boys begin to talk.

"You seem quite possessive." Severus remarks softly and I let my eyes fall shut so that I can hear better.

"I have to admit that I am. This relationship isn't like all of the others after all, Hermione's mine and she's going to stay that way." Regulus states seriously.

"Of course, no one would want to challenge Regulus Black's betrothment anyways right?" Severus answers sarcastically.

"If you're thinking about Rabastan or Antonin, they wouldn't dare get near her enough to try anything." Regulus's voice gets steely again and I can feel his arms tightening in anger.

"You know that they very well might tomorrow night, the betrothment announcement will still be fresh to them and they won't have a clue as to how long you've been with her." Severus points out.

"Yes, well you and Cissa will have to make sure that they get nowhere near her." Regulus states and slides his arm around my torso gently.

"Of course, Regulus." Severus whispers this softly before going silent for a moment, "Have you asked her about what we were speaking about earlier?" he asks quietly and I find myself on high alert when he says this.

"Not yet, it's not nearly the time to talk about it. Besides, I've already told you Severus, that she's very likely to say no and to get angry at me." Regulus answers as quietly as he can and wraps his arms around me tighter, obviously under the impression that I had fallen asleep.

"Yes, well, you will need to speak to her quickly. You know that she'll need the information before the ball tomorrow." Severus states and stands up for a moment, "Oh and will you please give the poor girl her ring already? I've only been here a few hours and I've noticed that she won't stop staring at her hand as if something's missing." He mutters before I hear him leaving the room entirely.

Regulus doesn't bother to move positions as we sit in front of the fire, his arm around my torso and my face pressed against his side. We stay like that until I truly do begin to fall asleep and only when I'm at the brink of unconsciousness does he move his arms around my body and pick me up gently. I let him take me out of the library and into a nearby bedroom as sleepiness feels my every pore. As he lies me down on the mattress, he slips my shoes off before pulling the covers over me. I hear two small thumps and a rustling before his weight is added to the bed and I feel him climbing under the covers with me. I fall asleep wrapped up in my future husband feeling safe and cared for, for the first time in a very long time.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: I'd like to thank all of my readers for being patient with me when it came down to my choosing between my schoolwork and my writing. My hard work this semester has paid off and this girl is entering her sophomore year of college with a 3.8 GPA:) Now that the semesters over, I should be able to update much more quickly because I've literally nothing to do during the summer holiday, and that's all thanks to the patience that you guys have exhibited with my past updates. Thank you so much for working with me, I promise everything will be updated much quicker now that I actually have free time!:) **

It's raining outside when sleep starts to slip away from me, I watch the water beads crawl down the window as my senses slowly start to come back and I feel warmth against my back. It's only when I feel myself being pulled closer to it that I realize that there is an arm wrapped around my waist. A small amount of shock goes through my system, before I relax enough to understand that it must be Regulus. No one else would even bother to put me in a bed, let alone sleep alongside me without needing a reason first. If my instinct hadn't of told me that it was my betrothed beside me, the fact that he pushed my hair out of the way before kissing my neck would have given it away. I smile gently before turning over in his arms and looking into his hooded eyes.

"Morning." I whisper quietly and he smirks at me for a moment before closing his eyes.

"Good morning." He mummers before pulling me closer to his chest and I lean into the hold my head fitting perfectly underneath his.

We stay like this for an undetermined amount of time, a comfortable silence filling the room as we stay close—an attempt to enjoy the first time out of many that we'd wake up together. He grips my waist tightly before rolling me over onto my back as he hovers above my body. He's still half asleep, his eyes slightly hooded and his half glazed over as we look each other in the eyes.

"She's beautiful, and therefore to be woo'd She is a woman, therefore to be won." Regulus whispers before leaning down to kiss me.

"Shakespeare, Regulus?" I tease softly causing our lips to scrape together from how close they truly are.

"Shakespeare, Hermione." He confirms before leaning in and giving me a gentle, easy kiss.

We're only physically connected for a couple of moments but after he pulls away, there is still a connection that pulls us together once more. Kissing Regulus is completely different than anything I've ever experienced—warm, safe, content—these emotions are new to me when it comes to being with someone. Ronald had only ever been sloppy and quick about his actions, always leaving me feeling more confused and mixed up than satisfied. Yet, Regulus, he was so sweet and when it came down to it, I was so, so happy with him.

"Have you wooed me yet?" I ask him quietly as I move my head to the side in order to speak causing him to chuckle.

"Not quite, but I think you've definitely been won." He admits and then kisses the tip of my nose before rolling off of me and getting out of the bed.

"I have." I mummer and uncover myself before getting out of the bed as well.

"I know." He smirks but when I look up, he's giving me a full on grin—dimples included—and I can't help but to smile back.

"I should eat before secluding myself in my room." I sigh and look down at my hands quickly before walking around the bed.

"I need to speak with you about something, I'll get us some breakfast if you want." He offers and reaches out to grip my elbow, pulling me towards him without much effort at all.

"It sounds important." I observe and his eyes dim slightly before nodding.

"It is. I'm not entirely sure that you'll want to be around me after it." I bite my lower lip as I realize that he's being completely serious about this.

"Regulus?" I can't help the fact that my voice quivers slightly as I look into his dark, dark eyes and see how completely uncharacteristic he's being at the moment.

"Go on ahead to your room and change, I'll grab some food and meet you there." He whispers, letting go of my arm, before he stalks out of the room without another word.

I frown to myself as thoughts start to race through my mind, what in the world did he think would make me not be around him? Could it really be something that bad? I make it to my room in what seems like record time and head straight to the closet, choosing to forgo my typical system of choosing what to wear based on the occasion in lieu of finding a really comfortable sweater. I brush my hair slowly, an attempt to calm my already raddled nerves, but it does nothing other than to straighten my hair out. He knocks on the door once before opening it, probably figuring that I would have already been waiting for him. He sits the tray of food down on my beside table and motions for me to sit on the bed with him, making me sit down before he even moves from his upright position.

"Would you like to eat first?" he asks quietly and I look at the food briefly before shaking my head.

"No, I'd just like to know what's going on really." I whisper truthfully and watch him as he twitches uncomfortably under my gaze.

"Before you arrived, I'd been in a relationship with someone else." He states this quietly and his eyes settle on the spot above my head. "I didn't break it off until the night that you signed the marriage contract." I feel this sinking feeling forming in my stomach and know that there is something else as he stands up and begins to pace in front of me.

"Who?" I ask quietly and he flinches at my question, but he must have figured that I would ask it, he should have anyways.

"Before you and I got serious, I was dating Severus." He says the words and I can tell that he's still talking, but suddenly there's this ringing sound in my ears as it really hits me what he'd just said and reality starts to sink in as I think about some of our past conversations.

_"My friend, Severus, will be there and I trust that he will watch over you if I cannot. It's important that you get to know him anyway, he'll be coming back with us after the ball and staying throughout the rest of school."_

"_He doesn't particularly feel like joining up either, you know? With him being here, no one could force him into anything_."

_"Once you meet him, you'll understand him a bit more as a teen. He's a great person when it comes down to it." _

_"Is Severus still coming around for the holidays, Regulus? I mean now that Hermione's here…" _

_"Severus will always be welcome in the home mum, as long as you and father allow it." _

"Hermione?" A gentle hand on my face brings me back to reality once more and I instinctively jerk away from him. "Are you okay?" he asks me quietly, his eyes scanning my face as he grips my chin.

"I-" I struggle to find the right words and move from his grasp to stand up as well, choosing not to face his direction and instead looking out of the window.

"You don't have to say anything, if you don't want." Regulus whispers and I'm suddenly aware of the fact that I am crying. "You must think that I'm disgusting." He says so quietly that I can barely hear him.

"It's not the fact that you were with him that hurts." I state quietly and shut my eyes as I feel myself beginning to shake from the attempted effort of trying not to cry. "It's the fact that you didn't tell me." I whisper the truth about it and I hear him getting closer to me, his steps stopping right behind my back.

"I tried-" he starts quietly.

"No. No you did not. You did not try to tell me anything about you and him together, you had me tricked into thinking that he was your best friend and now he's staying in the house permanently!" I turn on him and find it within myself to raise my voice, barely holding myself back from slapping him.

"Severus and I are over. I'm with you and he really is only my best friend." Regulus speaks softly, almost sounding chastened.

"No wonder he was staring at me from the moment he got here, I've stolen you from him!" I whimper as I make the connection and Regulus wisely says nothing. "This can't be happening." My eyes shut once more as I try to force the tears to stop.

"I'm sorry." He whispers this softly, but it makes no difference.

"I came here so that I could start over, I just wanted to belong for once, now I've not only screwed the timeline up from coming here, but my life here is already going down the drain." The truth slips out of my mouth easily and I struggle to breathe as pain invades my every sense.

"It's not. It's not going down the drain. You and I are together, remember? You even admitted that I won you!" Regulus suddenly sounds so very confident in his words, so that I know that he must have had an extra thought about how to fix things.

"Didn't you ever read the end of the play? Just because you've won the woman doesn't mean that you get to keep her." I say this softly before slipping by him and sitting back down on the bed.

"You should let him though." A voice mummers from the doorway and I can already recognize it.

"Severus, you're not helping things!" Regulus hisses quietly and I wipe my eyes even though the tears are still falling.

"Let him win you, Hermione. He cares for you much more than he ever did for me, besides I've come to the conclusion that he and I really are better off platonic." Severus continues as if he hadn't heard Regulus speak, "I'm not taking the breakup and subsequent marriage contract personally by any means, not when I have such a serious request to make of you myself." he states as if he believed what he was saying to be fact.

"R-Request" I flinch quietly as I realize that my voice had broken unintentionally and Regulus sits beside me quietly.

"Yes. That's what I actually needed to speak to you about, Hermione, Severus has something that he needs to ask of you personally." Regulus says this gently, but I can tell that he's trying to be as best behaved as possible.

"Regulus has no doubt spoken to you about how I need to stay here at least until the end of school?" Severus asks me and I nod at him, "There are two reasons for that in all actuality, I'm not entirely willing to jump into the dark side of the war and…" he trails off quietly as if he was trying to find the best words in order to describe something. "I currently have no home to go back to. My father has died at the hand of my mother and my mother is in Azkaban." My eyes, although still teary, meet his as I hear news that I'd never heard before.

"What?" The question falls out of my mouth before I can even comprehend what to say and Severus smirks at me almost playfully.

"That being said, I'm seventeen years old with no experience of raising a child or anything like that. When I heard from Regulus that you were used to being around a large family with children, I thought that you might be the first person that I ask to do me such a personal favor since I'd be living with you anyways." He continues, still avoiding the question in order to go into more detail. "The point being, my mother was arrested two days ago and I hadn't even known about the baby until it was thrust into my arms by the ministry officials." I blink at him for a moment.

"Baby?" It seems that when I'm in shock I can only manage to give monosyllablic answers.

"Yes. My mother had given birth to a baby right before she was arrested. I was hoping, more like banking on the fact that you felt pity on the child and would raise it as your own." Severus states and I know that he's being serious by the look on his face.

I can't really find it within myself to say anything to the man before me, mostly out of shock, and I find myself struggling to comprehend the very words that he's said. As soon as the words sink in and I realize what exactly he's asking of me, I look to Regulus for help. I was hurt by his actions, yes, but I knew that it was something that we could work out and I desperately needed to know his opinion on the matter of taking a child in.

"Severus and I have already spoken about it Hermione. I told him that it was up to you, if you're willing to adopt the child then so am I." he assures me and I blink at him wordlessly for a moment.

It seemed that I was having one of those moments where my brain was working faster than my mouth, because I couldn't stop myself from thinking about how this would help or hurt the future. It's almost like when I first made the decision to spend time with Regulus, my mind was going so quickly as it tried to weigh the pro's and con's that I barely had enough consciousness left in me to remember how to breathe. In all honesty, I had no idea how this could help or hurt the future. If I took the baby in and raised it as my child, then it would grow up in a much better home than what Severus grew up in, it would grow up two or three years before Harry and could become a role model or an annoying relative to him. If I didn't take the baby in, I had no idea what Severus planned on doing, but in all honesty, I knew that the baby was better off being raised as a Black.

"It'll take the Black name?" I ask quietly, looking to Regulus for the answer rather than Severus, because he would, in all reality be the one to make that decision.

"Of course, it'd be our child." Regulus affirms and I look down at my hands, subconsciously noting the lack of a ring on my finger, before making my final decision.

"Okay. Yea. I mean, yes." I whisper finally and Severus smiles at me for a brief second before Regulus stands up and offers me assistance in standing.

"Come on, I'll show you." Regulus whispers quietly and I look at his hand for a moment, wondering if I should accept his assistance or avoid it at the moment.

Eventually, I take his hand and let him pull me up from my seat on the bed, only because I'd figured that he'd make it up to me by allowing me to the choice of whether or not to take the child. I follow Regulus and Severus down the hall into one of the guest bedrooms and frown as I realize that there isn't even a crib in sight.

"Severus! You're not supposed to leave an infant in an adult bed without someone to watch it!" I hiss out as I make my way across the bedroom and pick the baby up out of the covers easily.

I focus on making sure that the child is still breathing and is healthy, before actually looking at it. I breathe in audibly as I notice that the baby couldn't be more than four or five days old and had already been effectively orphaned. I felt a connection to the child instantaneously, I would give it the best life that it could have and it would grow up to be perfectly fine and healthy. I smile down at the face that the infant's making and hold its little hand gently for a moment, noticing the color that the child was wearing and effectively noting it's gender.

"Do you have a name yet?" I ask Severus without even looking up from the baby.

"No. I thought that I'd leave that up to whoever took guardianship." He informs me and I feel an arm wrap around my waist gently.

I don't have to look up to know that it's Regulus, I knew just by the way that he stood beside me. He kisses my temple softly and looks at the infant alongside me without saying a word, almost as if he knew that the moment was much to important for unnecessary words to be spoken. I smile quietly as the infant opens its eyes and sees me for the first time.

"Hello, my little Sirius Triton."


End file.
